When We Grow Apart
by MerAngel
Summary: It's been a while since the Gaang saw each other. Toph is in an arranged marriage, Katara has a new love and a terrible betrayal is at hand. What more could tear them apart? A lot as you'll soon find out.ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1: Toph

.: When We Grow Apart :.

Chapter 1

I lay on the ground. Memories swirl by.

_They stood. My parents were pleased at my homecoming but were angry I left them. "Where did you think you were going?" asked my father in the voice he used with me just before I left. I couldn't answer his question. He was probably glaring. My mother was more concerned with making sure her poor helpless daughter was alright. She pulled me into the most crushing embrace she had ever given someone. Mother was not used to giving hugs. Behind me, my friends waited for me to tell my parents that I was staying for only a little while. My mother asked, "Will you stay with us? Not leave with your friends, but stay and settle here in Goa Ling?" I had a feeling she was starting to cry. As much as I wanted to go with my friends, I couldn't make my mother and father distress. It hurt to think of past times where I would worry of them. I stayed. My friends never came or spoke to me after. For four long years._

I was feeling sad. My throat felt as though there was a lump in it. "I shouldn't cry." I whispered to myself. I bit my lip to suppress tears. That's when I felt the soft girly footsteps of an old friend. One who I thought had left me behind. _Katara. _


	2. Chapter 2: Katara

Chapter 2

I was glad to see Toph. I just wished I didn't have to see her today. It was awkward. She had grown taller and slimmer. Her face was shaped less round. Her hair had grown longer too. I didn't want to say anything. She started the conversation. "Where have you been for four years?" I shrugged. "The South Pole. I haven't had much to do lately though." She was staring at me with her blank stare that gave the impression she was looking at your soul. "Are you married yet?" she queried. I was shocked that she asked that so abruptly. "No." I replied. "My dad didn't want me to get married at sixteen like all the other girls." Toph folded her arms angrily. This was her wedding shower.


	3. Chapter 3:Toph

Chapter 3

I had to be married at sixteen. My parents had insisted. They finally found the guy. They picked him. I was furious with them for that. The boy was stupid and blunt. He liked making muscles at his reflection. All the other girls admitted to seeing him do that. Many were envious I was marrying him. They could have him. He bossed other people around so much. He had no sense of humor. I would give anything in the world to be traveling with my friends again. Katara was nice. She came to my wedding shower. Then I wondered if she wasn't alone. "Are Aang and Sokka here too?" I asked. It would be nice to sense them coming over again. Katara just said, "Sokka's here." I surprisingly glad of that. I knew where Aang was. He was restoring the air temples. I hadn't known where Sokka was for a long time. This would be a difficult meeting.


	4. Chapter 4: Sokka

Chapter 4

I wasn't ready to see Toph again. Sadly, she came to the festivities. Katara was walking beside her. She was talking about some of the things that happened at the South Pole. I had met the guy she was going to marry. 'What a jerk' was my first impression of him. We came in as friends of the Bride-to-Be. This was boring. The food was good. Too bad a lot of the good stuff was gone. No one paid me any attention which was fine with me. When Toph finally came up to say something to me, I tried to tune her out. I thought she would say something offensive and sharp, but she asked, "Did you find Suki yet?" This was a pretty ok question. She didn't know what happened. "Yeah." I said. "But when we found her, she was already out of the prison with a bunch of other freed prisoners. She had fallen for this guy in there and pretended there was nothing ever between us." Toph looked sympathetic. It was like she had to deal with a broken heart too. But what did she know? The look was just the "oh you poor thing" look that Katara would give Aang when he talked about the old air temples. It was same old Toph.


	5. Chapter 5: Katara

Chapter 5

I walked around for some time. I wasn't able to talk to anyone. I was a peasant who nobody knew. Toph seemed to be a little happier. I began to wonder what my life would be like if I had an arranged marriage like Gran Gran or Toph. I would be shocked that Dad would do that. Luckily, things were more loose in the southern water tribe. I then caught sight of the boy Toph was marrying. I had to admit he was handsome. His blonde hair flopped over his eyes partly and he was muscular and tanned. He must have come from somewhere hot. His eyes were amber and his face shape was angular and familiar looking. Where had I seen it? Oh well. All the girls surrounded him. Toph said he was stupid but she might be wrong. He seemed nice enough. I approached. Warily at first, but soon he beckoned to me so I could kneel beside him. He began a story about how he rescued his cousin from a fire. "She was screaming inside the house." He whispered dramatically. "The roof was about to fall in on her when I dashed in and scooped her up." He turned to me, his eyes sparkling. He was so compassionate! "I don't think I've seen you around here before. What's your name?" I was taken by surprise. He had talked to me! Me in particular! "Katara." I stammered. I felt a blush creeping into my cheeks. "My name's Lee." He said. "How do you know Toph?" I remembered that he was marrying Toph. I replied, "We're good friends. We traveled with the avatar together." We talked for a little while about the journey I made and how he had first met Toph at a special party. Then he asked, "The avatar and you. Your relationship. Are you…?" I quickly answered, "It's not like that. We're just best friends. I rescued him from the iceberg." He smiled. I knew he understood and wouldn't go "yeah right" like Sokka or Toph. "I wish I could go on an adventure like you could." He sighed. Just watching him made my heart leap. What was wrong with me?


	6. Chapter 6:Toph

Chapter 6

I noticed Katara was listening intently to Mr. Airhead (my fiancé). I hoped she hadn't fallen for his "charm". Sokka groaned. I could tell he was annoyed. "This is like Jet." He grumbled. I knew that guy. He had flooded an earth nation town trying to free it from the fire nation. I knew that Lee was good-looking (from what I've heard) and maybe a little "heroic" but he couldn't be like Jet. Then Sokka tensed. "He took her hand and now they're headed for the gardens." He said. Then he grabbed my hand and pulled me in their direction.


	7. Chapter 7:Sokka

Chapter 7

I had seen Katara and Lee walk off into the Beifong gardens. I knew this wasn't good. Then I stopped. Katara was 18. She could take care of herself. But this was Toph's fiancé Katara was going on a romantic walk under the moonlight with. That Lee guy was no good. I had to find them. Then I spotted them. They were standing side by side, looking at the moon with, well, moony eyes. "What's happening?" hissed Toph. I tried to hear what those two were talking about.

"So your brother kept telling you this Jet guy was no good and you didn't believe him?"

"I know! I wished I'd listened earlier. Jet broke my heart, Lee."

I didn't need to hear this. It was boring and aggravating. It was mushy "in love" talk. I couldn't imagine why she fell for him. That's when I heard the next bit of the conversation. "Katara." Said Lee, the Airhead. "I want to be honest. I'm not in love with Toph. I really love you." I could have been sick right there. Toph stuck out her tongue in disgust. You know what? Katara fell for it and kissed him. Kissed 'im like that! I was so angry I couldn't move. Toph was even angrier. Her face was red. "I'll kill him." I had to hold onto her so she couldn't hit him. They went on walking away from us, hand in hand. "You can't kill him." I growled through clenched teeth. "I'm going to kill him first."


	8. Chapter 8:Katara

Chapter 8

Was I crazy kissing Lee?! I must have been completely stupid. Toph was marrying him! If the Beifongs found out, then they would be so angry. I expressed my concerns to Lee. "I'll keep this secret from them. When you go to the air temples to visit Aang, I can come with. That way, we're free to be in love." It sounded like a good plan. I wondered if I should tell Sokka or Toph. I thought better of it. They would be upset. "Will Toph come with us?" I asked. "Of course!" said Lee. "She needs to come with me. The ceremony will be in a month. I'm not allowed to leave her before then." I felt giddy with excitement. Wait, wasn't what I just said redundant? Oh well. I was in love with a guy who loved me back. I floated back to the festivities. I came crashing down to Earth when I saw Toph and Sokka's enraged faces. "We know about you and Lee." Said Toph. I was frightened. I had only seen Toph this mad when she and I were fighting and when Aang was not progressing in earth bending. Then I realized Sokka and Toph had spied on me. I was a grown woman and Sokka still got upset when I got close to a boy. It made me angry. "I don't care that you know. I'm going to keep on seeing Lee and there's nothing you can do about it." I said stubbornly. My mind was made up. Even if the whole world found out I would keep on seeing him. Sokka looked as though he had run out ideas. If my mind was made up, my mind was made up. I told them the plan of bringing Lee on the journey to the air temple. "Fine." Said Toph. "You can keep him for all I care." Joy!


	9. Chapter 9:Toph

Chapter 9

The morning after the wedding shower, my parents gave me a gift. "It's an armband to symbolize your marriage." Mother told me. It was pushed on to my arm almost up to my shoulder. I felt the carvings with my finger. They felt nice. I hugged my mom good-bye and put on my Earth Rumble tournament uniform. My sleeve covered the armband. I didn't want anyone to see it. Lee, Sokka, Katara and I first headed up the road to the stables. There was Appa! Aang must have sent him to us so we could get to the temple. Lee was fascinated and afraid of the great flying bison, but soon he got on his back. "Yip, yip" called Sokka. We took off into the air. It felt good to be back on Appa. I just wished that only the original members were there. Just Sokka, Katara, Aang, Zuko and me. I hung on to Sokka's arm because I still needed to get used to flying. My heart did a little back flip. The day wore on. It was sort of tiring. The air grew cooler. We landed in some wooded area. It was so late, Appa just collapsed and we slept on top of him. According to Katara the next morning, Lee fell asleep with his arm around Katara. I was almost sick. I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking of marriage and armbands and forbidden love. Sokka was awake too. He stared silently at the moon. Then he whispered "Get some sleep Toph. Don't tire yourself." I rested my head gently on Appa's saddle and slept.


	10. Chapter 10: Sokka

Chapter 10

I awoke to the smell of meat. I blinked open my eyes and noticed my hand clasped around Toph's. I let it go hurriedly and went to eat breakfast. Katara was talking quickly to Lee. I still thought he was no good. He smiled as though to say "hey everything's cool between us right?". I looked at my breakfast meat. Toph came to eat as well. We all just talked together and didn't pay any mind to the fact that there was a new guy in the group. I thought I recognized his face. It was probably just my imagination. But I had seen his face before I met him.


	11. Chapter 11: Katara

Chapter 11

I was looking forward to seeing Aang and all but I felt sort of guilty. I told myself, 'Katara, you have to get over the fact that Aang and you were close. It really can't be like that now.' Toph sat down in front of me. "We're not really friends anymore are we?" she asked dully. "We went everywhere together, dodging fire nation soldiers and helping people. But now we're just apart. Just because we are on a journey together doesn't mean that all of our friendship is mended. You guys left me without any contact or anything." I felt sorry for her. I meant to send a letter to her a long time ago but I was busy for four years. Maybe I should have listened to what Sokka said. I should have told her everything. It must have felt like betrayal the way I did that. We continued on. Then the sense of adventure really picked up. A very strong gust of wind pushed me over the edge of Appa's saddle. I was falling for a minute. It was just emptiness beneath me. Then Lee grabbed my hand and pulled me back up. He was so perfect! I realized this was the thing that Aang would do for me. Was there ever something between us? There couldn't be. Maybe the heat was getting to me.


	12. Chapter 12: Toph

Chapter 12

We finally reached the air temple. Sokka cried, "There it is!" As we landed, I could feel Twinkle Toes running for us. "You made it!" he cried. Then he stopped. I knew he had seen Lee. "Who's he?" he asked Sokka. Sokka replied, "Toph's fiancé and Katara's boyfriend." I was pretty sure Aang was mad. He seemed to be trying to let it go. He was having trouble. Katara hugged him hello which seemed to comfort him, and I gave him a "good to see ya" punch. Aang showed us around the air temple. He pointed out towers and rooms. Architecture. Blah. A lot of statues had crumbled or broken. It was my job to help fix them with my earth bending. I could do that. I started. Everyone else walked away. I wasn't interested in following them. I could stay by myself. After I was finished, I dusted off my hands and went to see the fire Katara had prepared. Instead, Lee was there. "Where's Katara?" I asked. Lee must have shrugged. "Went to get water." He said. I didn't trust him suddenly. At first he seemed like a show-offy lump, but now he was sounding like a criminal master mind. Where was he from again?


	13. Chapter 13: Katara

Chapter 13

Lee had volunteered to take over fire duty while I fetched water. As I went to the artificial lake, I heard Sokka and Aang talking.

"Are you sure you've seen him before?"

"Positive. I bet you have too. Doesn't he look like someone we battled once?"

"I don't know. He seems innocent enough. Maybe we should give him a chance."

"That's almost like what you said about Jet."

"Maybe you're overreacting. The guy just likes Katara a lot that's all."

"But how do you feel about that?"

"What do you mean?"

"I know a bunch of things Aang. I know exactly how you feel about my sister."

"You probably just read too much into it Sokka. Don't you have a job to do?"

Sokka walked off angrily. I didn't know what their conversation meant. I just gathered the water. I couldn't get what they had said out of my head though. What were they talking about?


	14. Chapter 14: Aang

Chapter 14

I knew I had seen Lee's face before. Had I bumped into to him at some point? I also thought that it was pretty dangerous to be marrying Toph and cheating on her with another girl. Was he an idiot? Katara seemed absolutely smitten with him. He reminded me of Jet. He surely couldn't be like Jet could he? I had to admit I was jealous. Why shouldn't I be? I loved Katara! I wanted to pinch myself and see if I was having a nightmare. For a couple days, life went on. I found myself glaring when ever I saw Lee and Katara chatting and laughing like old friends. I hated to see them hand in hand or side by side. It made me remember the old days when we were younger and we didn't have to worry about things like this. We had to worry about fire nation soldiers trying to kill us. One afternoon, Sokka and Toph came to me with startling news. "We know where we saw him before."


	15. Chapter 15: Sokka

Chapter 15

"So I'm pretty sure he's from somewhere in the fire nation." I concluded dramatically. Aang and Toph were a little puzzled. I had to run it by them one more time. "His name is Lee. That's a fire nation name. I heard my sword fighting master tell me this. His skin is tan. The fire nation is a hot place. This is where he got his tan. He makes a fire but uses surprisingly little wood. I think I know who he's related to but I can't be sure." Toph tapped her chin. "Who does he look like?" she asked. Aang gave me another puzzled look. He was good at those. I had to tell them my hunch. "He looks like Zuko and Azula."


	16. Chapter 16: Toph

Chapter 16

No way! He can't be related to them. I knew that Azula never had any kids and Zuko's children were four years old. Where was the connection? I needed to find Katara. Sokka held me back. "You can't." he said. "My hunch might not be correct." I struggled. "But the evidence.." Aang cut in, "We can't make a connection. Plus, what's wrong with being fire nation? There's no reason to break Katara's heart over that." I remembered Lee said he lived in the earth nation. Born and bred. He was a liar. He hid his fire bending from us and might have bad intentions. I needed to reveal that to Katara.


	17. Chapter 17:Katara

Chapter 17

It was morning. The sun was weak through the mist that formed everywhere around the artificial lake.

"_Aang I…" she started. He was going to say something as well._

"_You go first."_

No! Get it out of your head Katara. There was a shuffling of footsteps.

"Hi Katara. I didn't think you'd be up this early."

"Lee, can I get something off my chest?"

"Sure Katara, what's on your mind?"

"My friend in the northern water tribe wrote me a letter. She asked for advice with a love problem. You see, she has this old friend who you used to like her a lot. She has a boyfriend. Though all the same she's starting to have feelings for a guy she loved like a brother once and can't decide who she is really…" Lee cut me off by holding a finger to my lips.

"Katara," he said. "I think the best thing you should do is tell her to go for the one who she knows better." I shrugged. It wouldn't matter. I knew Aang the most but…

_It was dark night. A full moon shone down on the black sand. _

"_I just said I was confused!" came a distressed voice from the porch outside the theater._

_She ran away to hide her tears. 'Do I like him that way?' said the voice in her mind._

"Katara? You just zoned out."

"Oh. Did I? I was thinking about the times we were traveling around the world together."

"Tell me about your adventures."

I started off. I rattled on and on. Then I came to the cave of two lovers. An entire labyrinth of hurt and despair.

_The dark was closing in. She was so close that if they moved a centimeter closer, their noses would bump._

"You don't have to talk about it Katara."

I nodded. "I want to talk about a different time. Once when we were hiding on Ember Island."

_It was dark but she could definitely see his frown deepen more than she had ever seen it. The voices floated up from the stage._

"_I thought you were the avatar's girl!"_

_She thought he nodded._

_More voices from the stage._

"_The avatar? I love him like a brother."_

_He stood up and left._

"_Are you getting up? Bring me some fire flakes."_

Lee looked at me, mystified. "What happened then?"

I watched everything become blurry. I blinked and tears streamed down my face.

"What did he do?"

"Nothing Lee. Just made me more confused than I'd ever been."

"He hurt you some way, didn't he?"

I wanted to answer no but that wasn't the whole truth.

"It doesn't matter anymore. Did I tell you the actor playing Zuko had his fake scar on the wrong side?"

Lee stood up. "Tell me what happened Katara; I want to help you feel better."

I looked up. I was going to tell the truth.

"He told me how he felt about me."

"That's not enough."

"What do you want me to tell you?!"

"What he did not what he said!"

"He kissed me alright!" I shrieked at him. "He kissed me once and it was over!"


	18. Chapter 18:Katara

Chapter 18

He stared at me like I was crazy. "He kissed you… and you let him?"

"No I didn't. I left."

"What were you confused about?"

"Oh nothing."

"Talk to me."

I looked into his amber eyes. He would understand. I knew that if he really loved me, he would talk to me.

"At that time, the war was reaching its peak and there was a lot of conflict going on. Zuko had joined the group and had finally been accepted by me. I had a feeling I knew how Aang felt about me but …"

"_Kissy kissy," Sokka teased. "Somebody's in love."_

_Aang's blush deepened._

"Part of why I was feeling confused was that I loved Aang like a brother and nothing more. Then, on the Day of Black Sun, we were standing on the submarines. . ."

"_What if I don't come back?"_

"_Oh Aang you won't…"_

_She was silent. His kiss muffled everything._

"And?"

"You've seen the play right?"

"Well sure."

"That's all that happened."

A voice behind me said, "That's a lie Katara."

I turned. _Aang._


	19. Chapter 19:Aang

Chapter 19

Katara's eyes turned towards me. I didn't care if they were like knife stabs. Lee's own amber eyes went wide. "What do you mean that's a lie?" he asked. I sat down in front of him. "I'll tell you what really happened." Katara shook her head. I was to angry too care at the moment. He did look like Azula and Zuko.

Katara clapped a hand over my mouth. "Aang," she said. "Will you please butt out of our private conversation? I'll talk to you later, I promise." She looked me in the eye. Her own blue eyes were wet and sad. She had been crying. I agreed to leave but then hid to listen to the rest of the conversation.

"In the play, you and Zuko had a relationship. Was it like that in real life?"

It better not have been.

"No! He had a girlfriend."

"What was Aang's reaction to the play?"

"He was…upset."

You're darn right!

"I remember you said that was the night he…"

"Yeah, but can we put that behind us?"

"Did he kiss you before that?"

"I said let it go Lee."

"Tell me Katara, you can trust me not to tell anyone else."

She hesitated. "Why do you want to know?"

"Katara, if he didn't kiss you you've got nothing to hide from me. I feel like he did."

"So maybe we did share a kiss before the Invasion but why does it matter? It's in the past."

"I don't feel like it's in the past for you two."

In the past. That hurt less than what I remembered.

"_Now's not the right time."_

"_When is the right time?"_

I blanked out with the rest of the conversation but only caught the end.

"Lee, if you don't drop that subject right now you are going to get it so hard!"


	20. Chapter 20: Katara

Chapter 20

I was busy in one of the rooms in the air temple. Lee had been really pushy. Why did he think that there was something between me and Aang? There was nothing there. Only Aang thought there was something.

"_I thought we were going to be together."_

"Hey," came Sokka's voice from the door way. "Is something on your mind?"

I told him about what happened earlier.

His eyes went wide. "Where was I when you were kissing the bald kid?"

"I knew you wouldn't understand."

"No, I do. Aang cared about you for a long time. You were so oblivious to it that you didn't care about his feelings the night you ripped his heart out."

"Thanks Sokka. Blaming me for shattering a 12 year old boy's heart really makes me feel better."

"Think of how he's feeling Katara. If you had fallen in love with Aang, you kissed him in the hopes you would wind up together and then you were told that then was not the right time and never full filled your love even in the right time would you feel happy?"

I shook my head. He was right. I loved Aang like a brother before when it was the wrong time. Now was the right time.


	21. Chapter 21:Toph

Chapter 21

"You're a jerk." I hissed angrily at Lee. He shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about Toph." I folded my arms and tried to look intimidating. That was difficult because I was never the tallest of the group.

"Don't play dumb. I know you lied when you said you were from the Earth Nation."

"So what if I did?"

He was admitting faster than I thought. Something had to be up.

"Why would you lie when everyone asked you where you were from?" I asked. "You're plotting something Lee."

"If I am, then maybe you should just stay out of it!"

I jumped back, startled at the tone of his voice. I left quickly.


	22. Chapter 22:Aang

Chapter 22

I was just hanging around on my own. I couldn't face Lee or Katara. Lee was so smug with himself and he acted as though he had won in some way. Maybe I should have just left.

"So avatar," came Lee's voice. "Are you troubled at all by the fact that Katara likes me more than she ever liked you."

"Are you trying to mess with my head Lee? If you are it's not working."

"Oh well. That wasn't the main part of my plan anyway."

"What plan?"

Suddenly, he jumped me and slammed me onto the ground with my hands tied behind me. I struggled to get free but it was no use. There was a piece of cloth over my mouth and one around my eyes. I was captured.


	23. Chapter 23: Sokka

Chapter 23

Aang did not come to the campfire. Neither did Lee. I went looking for them, calling their names. I had a feeling that Lee was the cause of Aang not being here. Speaking of the devil, Lee came out of the bushes in a sad way. "Where's Aang?" I demanded. Lee shook his head like he didn't know.

When we were back around the fire, Lee told his story. Apparently, Aang had eavesdropped on Katara and Lee's conversation. He was so depressed by what Katara had said, he left the air temple in shame. After he completed the story, Toph's unseeing eyes narrowed. "You're a pretty good liar Lee." She said. "But not good enough!"

With that, she earth bended a huge rock over his head. Katara gasped and tried to get Toph to stop but she wouldn't. "Tell the truth, Lee. Toph knows you're lying." I said. Lee shrugged.

"I took Aang to a place just at the foot of this mountain. He's captured there."

The rock moved in.

"My plan was to mess with his head until I had an excuse why he left. Now I'm going to hand over the avatar to a close associate and collect the reward from her."

"Who is she?"

Lee only smirked and fire bended the rock to pieces. He ran for it. I dashed after him trying to navigate his path of escape. Katara was opening her canteen. We found he had stopped in front of us. He then blasted fire at Katara who quickly blocked the attack but was pushed back. I swung my sword, only to be intercepted by a shield of fire. I drew back quickly. Then I noticed that he had someone under his arm. _Toph._

That jerk had her hostage. "One more attack," he threatened. "I'll burn your friend."

"Don't listen to him." Toph grunted. "He's a master of mind games. I thought he was stupid for a long time but it turns out he's got a plan deeper than just collecting a reward for the avatar. He…"

Lee clapped a hand over her mouth. He laughed and said, "I'd love to stay but as you can see I've got some things to do."

He disappeared in a swirl of fire. Toph was gone with him.


	24. Chapter 24: Sokka

Chapter 24

It wasn't possible. They just disappeared. Where did they go? What happened? Katara dropped to her knees. "I should have just stayed in love with Aang." She moaned. I went to her side and patted her shoulder. "It's going to be okay."

"No it's NOT!!"

"Katara calm down."

"No. Everything's going wrong. I thought after the war there would be peace, but some people are trying to capture Aang again. You didn't lose any one special to Lee! Aang could be dead by now and a water tribe baby is being born!"

How could she say I hadn't lost anyone special? I had. Toph was one of my closest friends. Sozin's comet was a day when I thought I would lose her.

"_Toph!" I cried. "I don't think boomerang's coming back!"_

_Her hand was slipping. It almost completely lost grip. I grabbed her by the tips of her fingers. "I think this is the end!" I shouted over the noise of the fire blasts. Tears filled up her eyes. Then the other airship crashed into the one we were on. I could drop her to safety._

"We're going to find Aang and Toph!" I said. "We will find them!"


	25. Chapter 25: Aang

Chapter 25

I blinked open my eyes. Everything seemed so mixed up. I was tied to a tree. Lee had placed cloth over my mouth. I tried to free myself but the knots were too tight. I looked up. And got a shock. Toph was hanging from the tree by her feet. Her hair was down and she looked bruised. She was in a peaceful slumber. Toph's hands were bound to her legs so she couldn't move them. I saw that on her arm was a gold band with a symbol carved into it. Where did she get that? I wondered.

I tried to call her attention to the fact that I was tied up and gagged but she didn't to hear me. Then I realized the lump on her head. She was unconscious. Or worse. No! I told myself. She's probably fine. To distract myself from the image of Toph captured, I looked around. It was just dense forest. I had expected a fire pit in a clearing with a tent, but there was just nothing. I continued to try escape but it was useless. There was the sound of someone creeping stealthily through the bushes. I perked up! It could be Sokka and Katara coming to help us! But it wasn't. Lee stepped out of the bushes. "Hello Avatar." He said. "Did you have a nice sleep?"


	26. Chapter 26: Toph

Chapter 26

The blood was rushing to my head. Ropes bit into my ankles. Part of me knew I was in danger and the other was trying to figure out what my name was.

I groaned and opened my eyes. I couldn't see. There wasn't a blindfold on me. I was blind. How long had I been blind? Since birth?

_Toph Beifong._

Was that my name? Yes. It was my name. But who were the Beifongs and why did the name sound important?

Snap! I fell with a thud. Owwwwch. The ropes fell away. I was gently raised to my feet. I swayed. "Easy there," said a familiar voice. I didn't know why it was familiar. As far as I knew, I had never heard that voice before.

"Are you okay?" the voice whispered. I thought for a minute. I was unbalanced and bruised all over, but I nodded. The hand gently pushed me forward. "The big jerk's asleep," whispered the voice again. "But he was able to rough Aang up a bit." I didn't know that name. Was I being kidnapped? Should I shout for help? Who would help?

I let the voice lead me away. After a while, he let me walk without his hand. "Wait!" I hissed. "I can't see. What if I bump into a tree?"

"You can't tell where the trees are?"

"No! I'm blind!"

"Are you feeling all right Toph?"

The strange person knew my name. Still, the 'friend or foe' question remained. "Hmm. Let's see. I've been tied up, hung upside down and taken away in the middle of the night by a stranger. I'm not feeling all right!"

"Gee Toph. Have you been hit on the head recently? Ohmygosh I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!" the voice answered. This guy was afraid of me.

"I have one question," I said. "Who are you?"


	27. Chapter 27:Sokka

Chapter 27

I was completely shocked when Toph asked that. I'd known her for years! "I'm Sokka," I said. She blinked.

"Doesn't ring a bell."

"You mean you don't know who I am? Do the names Aang, Zuko and Katara mean anything?"

"I'm sorry. I don't know them."

I felt a chill creep through me. I wondered what Lee had done to her, and it frightened me. The bruises on her head gave me an idea, but I didn't like it.

My mind wandered to how Katara was doing. We had split up to make Lee confused. He wouldn't be able to follow two trails.

"Come on," I urged. "We have to get back to Appa before Lee realizes you're gone." I took Toph's hand and began to lead her through the woods, but she dragged her heels on the ground. "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what you're doing!" she hissed.

I stared back at her. "I'm rescuing you," I whispered. Her eyes challenged me. They said, _Who from? _

We didn't have time to argue. I picked her up and ran for it. I clapped a hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming. She kicked me in the chin and tried to punch me. I felt the vibration of her scream behind my hand.

We finally came to the clearing where Appa was waiting. Katara and Aang were already on Appa. Aang was limp and unconscious in Appa's saddle. I passed Toph up to Katara and I took the reins. "Yip yip," I whispered.

The next morning, Toph was lying still in the saddle, completely exhausted by last nights rescue. I went over to her. There were some questions we needed to ask her. It was strange how peacefully she slept when her way of showing affection was a hard punch in the arm. I shook her gently. Her eyes fluttered open and she sat up. She rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"I have some questions."

Toph looked confused. "Isn't it **me** who should be asking the questions? I don't know who you are or where I am and you want to ask me questions?" Something was wrong with her memory. She didn't know any of us.

I put my hands on her shoulders and said, "I'm Sokka. You call me Snoozles. I have a boomerang and a younger sister. You always pull pranks on me. You must remember." She shook her head. "I don't," she whispered in a meek voice. I had only heard that voice once. She had been faking it at the time. Now it was real and unlike her. I let go of her. This wasn't Toph. Her voice was the same, her eyes and hair were the same and she answered to "Toph".

Katara stepped up. "How are you Toph?" she asked. Toph just blinked and said, "And who are you?" Katara's face became puzzled. "It's me," she answered. "Katara. Sugar Queen? We've been friends for years."

"She doesn't know us Katara," I said. "She hit her head. She doesn't remember any of it. Not even herself."

"I think," Toph started. "I think that you all aren't going to hurt me. I would like to learn more about you and more about me. Before whatever happened to me."

I knew Toph would need to be taught earthbending again and be led around, but if that's what it took to get our friend back, we'd do it.


	28. Chapter 28:Toph

Chapter 28

I splashed water on my face and scrubbed. I untied my hair and let it in the water. I was so dirty. I wondered where the dirt had come from. It was refreshing to wash.

I heard soft footsteps. "Toph," said Katara. "Is that you?" I turned, hands on hips. "Why do you sound so surprised?" I asked.

"Well…"

"What?"

"Never mind."

She walked away. I stepped behind a bush that seemed the right height and undressed behind it. I stepped into the water up to my shoulders. I began to wash my feet and hair. My hands ran over the calluses and cuts. Despite the roughness, they were sensitive.

"Oh my gosh I'm sorry I'll just go!" I turned. That was Sokka's voice. I had come to recognize it quickly. I shrank so the water came to my chin. I was probably blushing like crazy. He walked away quickly. I breathed a sigh of relief. I finished washing and dressed. I couldn't put my hair up by myself so I let it hang to my waist.

I walked in the camp and met a strangled gasp. "Toph…you…I…" Sokka said. "You look…I mean you…" I was sort of pleased he was shocked. "What was that thing on your arm?" He was changing the subject. "What thing?" I asked. He came over and rolled up my sleeve.

The thing felt like a metal bracelet. I felt the carved symbol.

"_What's this momma?"_

"_It's a carving of a panda lily. A rare flower and the symbol of engagement."_

"_Will I ever get one?"_

_Momma sighed. "Maybe when you're older, Toph." She stressed the 'maybe'._

"A panda lily," I murmured. Who was that lady? Momma. Mrs. Beifong. Mother.

Sokka stared. "Is that the marriage symbol there?" I nodded. His fingers traced it. "Where did it come from?" I asked.

"You were engaged."

"Who was I engaged to?"

There was a pause. "Shouldn't you go find Aang? You have to learn earth bending again." I almost forgot! "Which one is Aang again?" I asked. Sokka sighed and took me by the arm. I followed him over to where there was probably a clear space.

Aang greeted me in a cheery, light hearted way. "I can't believe I'm teaching the greatest earth bender in the world how to move a rock! I remember when you taught me that." Did I?

"_Keep your knees high, Twinkletoes!"_

I guess I did. I giggled. I could feel confusion around me. "Something wrong?" I said. Sokka swallowed. "Well, the old Toph never giggled." There were so many things "the old Toph" was that I wasn't! Was I really her?


	29. Chapter 29:Katara

Chapter 29

I was trying to get the sight of Aang's bruised body out of my head. He was a little burned too. When I had been healing him, I had seen the hole the lightning made. I felt sick. I wished I had never met Lee, never opened up to him. It had been sort of the same with Zuko. I thought at first he was my friend, and then he betrayed us all. I got over that a long time ago. Lee would take another few years.

I couldn't believe Toph was washing her face and hair. I told Sokka to go and see if she actually got in the water. She did. I wasn't used to Toph not acting like herself, not calling me Sugar Queen or Aang Twinkletoes, and not punching us in the arm to show she cared about us.

I went to see how her lesson with Aang was going. She had successfully moved a rock. Now she was learning how to "see" with earth bending. I watched her try to hit small columns of rock with Sokka's club. She whacked one to pieces her first try, but that was just luck. I never realized how hard it was to be blind. Toph made it seem so easy.

Aang laughed as Toph bonked Sokka in the head by accident. He looked so happy. I remembered how I felt about him, but there was a nagging doubt in the back of my head.

The night we brought Aang and Toph back to camp, after Toph and Sokka were well into the woods, Lee woke up. I froze with terror. My arms squeezed Aang tighter. Lee looked at me. "Go," he said. "You haven't seen the last of me." He didn't hurt me. It didn't make sense. Unless he really cared about me. Part of me firmly believed he wasn't that bad. Maybe there was an influence. I missed his kisses and the way he held my hand.

Aang walked over to me. "There's a burn on my leg that hasn't healed yet," he said. "Could you help me? It still hurts." I gestured for him to follow me. "It might be infected," I said. I led him into the dimness of my tent. I drew water from my water skin and began to apply it to the wound. "So you know that Lee…" he started. I nodded.

"I mean, I know he made you _happy_."

He spat the word "happy" as if it was poison.

"I sort of confided in him. My secrets and …"

"You don't have to talk about it."

"I want to." Tears were filling my eyes. I told him about what I had told Lee. "…and I didn't want to hurt your feelings and I didn't want…" Aang put a finger up. "I understand." I smiled at him. He was so kind. I remembered my journey to find the monster that killed my mother. Aang had been on my shoulder the whole time.

I kissed him on the cheek like I used too. He blushed. "You're finished," I said.


	30. Chapter 30:Aang

Chapter 30

"_A good friend stabs you in the front"_

_-Oscar Wilde_

I raced out of Katara's tent with the feeling of her kiss on my cheek. I saw Toph drinking a cup of water and sweating from her hard work. She was looking very different. Not just because the last time I had seen her was when she was 12 and now she was 16. She had taken a bath without all of us dragging her to the water.

"_I'm not going in!"_

_Toph kicked Sokka in the chin. I tried to hold Toph's legs but she was stronger than me. Zuko suggested we twist her arm, but I told him not to. Finally, Ty Lee did her jabbing thing. Sokka picked up Toph like she was a wet noodle. She was letting out a stream of words that made us all blush. That was for Mai and Zuko's wedding._

Toph looked almost helpless sitting there.

The memory made me think of Zuko. I wished he were here. He would have told me to lift my chin and suck it up.

I glanced at the sky. There was a dot in the sky. I thought it was a bird at first, but soon it came closer. It was an old war balloon. Lee.

"We need to get out of here. Lee's coming." At lightning speed, we packed and got on Appa. Toph looked worried. "Is it safe on that thing?" she asked. "Don't worry," Sokka said. "You can hang onto me."

Appa took to the skies with a jolt. Toph clung so hard to Sokka, he cried out. I glanced behind me to see that the war balloon was lagging. We landed in a clearing.

"Are we far enough away?" I called. "No," Sokka moaned.

The war balloon landed.


	31. Chapter 31:Zuko

Chapter 31

I stumbled out of the war balloon, hearing the shocked gasps. Mai and Ty Lee came behind me, Mai carrying our daughter.

"Zuko!" they cried. I was caught in the crushing embrace of my old friends. When they backed away, I realized Toph hadn't joined the hug. She stared at me. "Who is 'Zuko'?" she asked. I looked at Aang for an explanation. He hurriedly told me about how she lost her memory. When I asked how, everyone went quiet.

I changed the subject. "This is my daughter, Lark." Katara went over to see her and cooed, "What a beautiful girl." She was a beautiful toddler. She had her mother's jet black hair and my amber eyes. "Why did you bring her with you?" Sokka asked.

"I didn't want to leave her on her own. She's old enough to travel with us."

My friends looked so different. Even Toph looked as if she had taken a bath. But that was impossible. I wished she would punch me on the arm like she used to.

Ty Lee skipped up to Sokka. "How are things?" she trilled. Sokka leaned away from her. She obviously made him nervous. We were all getting used to her war makeup.

Mai came up beside me. "Have you run into any trouble? There's been an emergency lately and we wanted to warn you," she said. "What emergency?" gasped Aang. I looked at Mai who nodded.

"Azula escaped prison."


	32. Chapter 32:Aang

Chapter 32

We all froze. I wondered if I heard correctly. "I took her bending away. How can she escape?" I cried. Mai and Zuko looked like they didn't believe it either. "Do you know where she is?" asked Katara. Zuko shrugged. He didn't know. Going around on our own was know extremely dangerous.

"Come with us in the war balloon," Zuko said. "You can stay with us at the palace." I hesitated. We could go with them, but what about dealing with Lee? He had to be taken care of. But it was too dangerous to be away from a town with Azula on the loose.

"We'll follow you on Appa," I decided.

We hurried to pack. I jumped on Appa's head. "We're going to have to get out of here buddy," I whispered. Appa groaned in complaint.

I helped Katara onto Appa's saddle. I was surprised when she slid next to me on Appa's head. "Do you think Azula got her bending back somehow?" she muttered. "She couldn't have," I replied. "Ozai hasn't had any bending for years. Why would Azula be different?" Katara didn't have an answer.

Appa took off and I was happy to have the wind against my face. We watched as the world grew smaller beneath us. The effect was ruined by the fact there was a psychopathic murderer on the loose.


	33. Chapter 33:Katara

Chapter 33

The palace of the Firelord was glorious. It had a beautiful garden with small ponds and turtle ducks.

I walked along the halls to find my room. It was hard to find my way around. The halls twisted and turned aimlessly.

I finally found my room and sat down on the edge of the nice bed. A palace! I had never been in a real one before. The water tribe palace couldn't compare to this beautiful place. My bed had sheets made of fine fabric. There were tapestries with Fire Nation insignias on them. The room had its own bath. It was done in pink and white tiles with pure white towels.

I took my travel worn dress off and drew myself a bath. With hot water! It wasn't the water that had slogged through muddy swamps and dirty rivers I had to bathe in before we came to the palace.

After I stepped out of my bath and wrapped myself in a clean towel, I took out the dress I had meant to wear to Toph's wedding.

As I put it on, I remembered Lee. Toph's memory loss also struck through my mind. I tried to forget what had happened as I prepared for dinner.

Things were so formal here. I didn't mind that much. I remembered dressing up for the Earth King's ball. I brushed my hair put it in a bun.

There was a soft knock on my door. Toph was standing out there, her face stricken with panic. "I need your help Kya!" she cried. I refrained from pointing out that Kya was my mother's name. Mine was Katara. I followed her to her room. She had a dress laid out on her bed. A hairband lay on the night stand. "I need help getting ready," she complained. I sighed. This was completely un-Toph like.

I drew her bath and washed and combed her hair. I helped her into her dress and put her hair in its enormous bun. She brushed the bangs that hung in front of her eyes. She looked lovely by the time we finished.

We walked down the great stairs to the dining room. I felt the pleasure of making a grand entrance. My skirt swept wide, making a light brushing noise. I made Toph hold my hand and put her other hand on the rail so she wouldn't trip and fall.

As we reached the part of the stairs that was completely visible to the great hall, I heard a much strangled gasp from Sokka and I saw Aang blush furiously. Seeing Aang blush made me blush as well.

We reached the bottom of the stairs and I let go of Toph's hand. She reached out for another's and found Sokka's. Sokka led Toph to the table and I sat between Toph and Aang.

There was a lot of catching up over dinner. We also had to tell Toph about her past. Whenever one of us left out a bit, someone else would fill in. "I was going to be _married?_" Toph gasped. "To that jerk Lee?" I nodded. Then Toph said, "You liked him and kissed him? Why?" Aang spit a little bit of the water he was drinking back into the cup. Zuko raised an eyebrow. "You say he was trying to trap Aang and give him away to an associate?" he said. "He might have been a rogue Fire Nation guard. One who followed my father." It was possible.

After dinner, I rushed back upstairs. I changed out of my formal dress and fell, exhausted, on my bed.


	34. Chapter 34:Sokka

Chapter 34

I was lying awake for three hours. My eyes ached from keeping them open. A warrior doesn't get frightened. _What was that noise? _Oh. A warrior doesn't get frightened, except when the thing you're scared of is Azula. It's totally acceptable then.

Azula was out of prison? How could the universe do that? Because the universe hates me. Awwwwwww! This was awful.

"Sokka," a voice whispered from my door. There was a soft knock on the door. I got up and went to the door. Yawning, I pulled it open and saw Toph, wearing a nightdress. Her hand was raised, ready to knock on the door again. She blushed a nice shade of red and babbled, "Sorry I bothered you. I'll just go back to bed." She turned to walk away but I grabbed her shoulder. "Why did you come by?" I asked. Toph gritted her teeth. "I was just…I couldn't sleep," she muttered. "I need something to keep my mind off the fact there's a psycho on the loose and I'm engaged to a jerk." I felt sorry for her. She couldn't remember her friends. "I'll tell you about the first time we met you," I said. She smiled.

Toph sat on the chair by the fireplace and I sat on the edge of my bed. "The first time one of us saw you were a vision in a magic swamp. When we saw you in person, you were the champion of Earth Rumble Six. You were just a little 12 year old blind girl. I thought you were GOING DOWN!" Toph chuckled. Her smile went wide. I told her all about the Blind Bandit and the Beifongs and Xin Fu. Her cloudy eyes went wide and screwed up with laughter.

Toph yawned. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. I waved a hand in front of her face. She didn't react. She was completely asleep.

.::.

By the morning, Toph had wandered out of my room. I ran down the stairs as quick as possible to make sure I got the meat. Breakfast flew by. My mind was like this: Meatmeatmeatmeat belch meatmeatmeat.

Katara ran up to me. "Can you take Toph around the gardens for me? I'm busy." I groaned. I wanted to draw some new stuff. I was sure I was getting better at it! I had to agree to it because Katara glared at me.

I took Toph by the arm and started to lead her into the gardens. I was sure there was a turtle duck pond somewhere. "Slow down!" she complained. "I can't see where I'm going!" I stopped. The turtle duck pond was a little way away. I dragged her forward again. She dug her heels in the ground and growled, "Slow down Sokka! You're going too fast." I stopped in mid manly stride. I looked back at her. I gently pried her hand off my arm. "You always trail after me. Why me? Can't you bother Katara and Aang? I'm just trying to find somewhere to set you down where you won't hurt yourself!" I said. She frowned. Not just a hurt frown but an angry frown. "I trail after you because Aang and Katara are two peas in a pod and you're different! You're the one I feel closest too! You helped me before. You…" she trailed off. "You're my friend." I thought I saw tears but she shook her head violently to get rid of them. She turned and ran.


	35. Chapter 35:Zuko

Chapter 35

"Toph, what's wrong?"

Toph stormed past me. I reached out for her arm but she just shoved it away. "I want to be alone, Zuko. But thanks for the concern."

I shrugged and turned down the hall. I had something important to do. Mai ran up. "Zuko!" she gasped. "I heard that you're going with the avatar to track down Azula!" I cursed my big mouth. That servant had blabbed everything to Mai. I put my hands on her shoulders. "I have to find my sister," I murmured. "Our daughter can't live in a world where Azula is loose." She looked at me, her eyes brimming with tears. "I'll miss you. What will you do when you find her?" she whispered. I was at a loss for words. She hugged me. She still wasn't used to giving hugs. Her hugs were stiff, like I was hugging a stick. It made me think of Uncle's warm hugs. I wished he was here, but he was busy with his tea shop.

Suddenly, I heard a scream. We rushed toward the stairs and found a small girl lying at the bottom. Toph. We ran down the stairs as quick as we dared. An old cut had opened up in Toph's head. She was breathing steadily and her eyes were closed. She looked peaceful. Everyone was crowded around her. "I shouldn't have let her go on her own," whispered Sokka.

Toph's eyes opened. I breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you okay?" I asked. She glared. "Of course not! I lost my memory, got engaged to a jerk, and fell down the stairs!" she shouted. "I'm not okay!" We all smiled. She was back! We swarmed around her and wrapped our arms around her. "Stop hugging me," Toph growled. But she smiled. She was back!

Later that day, I told Aang about my plan. "Isn't it dangerous to go and search for her?" I nodded. "It has to be done," I said. Aang agreed. We had to keep going. It would be just like old times. Except the original old times included me hunting them down.

"Now that Toph is back, we can leave," I said. "It will work. We just need to follow her trail." Aang looked uncertain. "You see," he started. "Azula is good at covering her tracks."

"I'm her brother. If anyone knows Azula, it's me."

"I hope that when we find her, things go according to plan."

After that conversation, all of us were packing our bags. "You have to leave this afternoon?" Mai asked. I nodded. We had to leave as soon as possible. If we waited any longer, Azula's trail would be harder to follow. I hugged Mai and left the room with my bag. She rushed after me and kissed me goodbye. "I'll miss you," she whispered. I couldn't find the words to answer her. I said, "It seems like we haven't been married for four years. It's like we're still dating." She smiled.

Even later, we climbed onto Appa. The big guy remembered me and soaked me with his saliva. Appa launched into the air as soon as we were on his back.


	36. Chapter 36:Katara

Chapter 36

The firelight was flickering, making shadows on all our faces and providing warmth. I scooted closer to the fire. My brother and Zuko were playing some music for us. I think it was called 'Little Soldier Boy'. Zuko played the soongi horn pretty well, but Sokka on the little guitar was awful. He had played something before for giant blind earthbending badger moles. Zuko finished singing. "This song always made Uncle Iroh cry," he said. "It's because his son never came home from the war. I didn't know him well. He was older than me." I felt so sad.

There was a sound in the woods. I turned quickly. A dark shadow stumbled out of the woods. It was female and wore a long skirt. Their face was illuminated in a short burst of firelight. Half of its face had war make up on it. Of course, the rest was scratched and muddy. It was recognizable.

"Suki!"

She grinned at us and stepped forward. Sokka leapt to his feet, and then said, "Suki. What a surprise. What happened to your friend?" He was curt and polite, but Suki didn't notice his tone and said, "He died." There was silence. Suki and Sokka stared at each other a moment, then sat down next to each other.

I yawned pointedly. "Let's go to bed Toph," I said.

"But I'm not tired,"

"Yes you are, Toph."

I gripped her hand and dragged her into our tent. She dropped onto the floor and yawned. "I am tired now," she said. "I guess you're right." I laughed and lay down next to her.

I couldn't sleep. Toph, Zuko and Aang had found sleep easy but I was hanging on to being awake. I listened to the conversation outside.

"So there wasn't anything between you and him?"

"There wasn't Sokka. He was just my friend."

"What happened?"

"We got ambushed by a…well I'm not sure who it was. It was dark. My friend was the only one who died. Everyone else ran into the woods. I hope they're safe."

"So everything is unchanged between us?"

"Yes Sokka. Now let's get some rest. We need our energy."

"Agreed. A warrior needs his-their sleep."

I finally drifted off.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

When I woke up, Sokka and Suki were completely knocked out by the smoldering remains of our fire. Their hands were clasped and I thought it was so sweet. There was just one thing I thought of then.

When we were still going to the Air temples, I had woken up early and found Lee's arm around me. All I thought at the time was the sweet gesture. The little voice in my head said, _He really loved you! It wasn't a trick! He didn't hurt you!_ I couldn't listen to the little part of me that believed that part of him was really good.

I glanced back at the group. They were still asleep. I looked at the woods. Lee was somewhere out there. I would find him. I had to. I wondered if I should wake up the rest. I decided against it. I grabbed my pack and water skin. I could handle myself.

I walked into the trees.


	37. Chapter 37:Aang

Chapter 37

I rolled over. I was in the area between sleep and getting up. I finally decided to get up. I tried to blink the sleep out of my eyes. As soon as I got up, I could feel that something was wrong.

I jumped up and ran out of the tent. There was Suki and Sokka still asleep by the fire. I looked in the girl's tent. Toph was laying there, her eyes shut. Katara's place was empty, but that was typical. She was an early riser. Zuko was asleep. I was awake of course. But where had Katara gone? She wasn't around camp. My heart began to pound. I looked around the camp for a trace of her. Her water skin was gone and so was her pack. She had taken some food too. Where had she gone?

I woke up Sokka, who mumbled something about meat. "Katara's gone," I whispered. Sokka panicked. He woke up the others, who came running.

"Search the woods," I ordered. "She can't have gone far." They nodded and began to spread out. Please, I begged. Let Katara be all right. I pulled out my glider and launched into the air. I flew over the woods, looking for a hint of a figure dressed all in blue wandering the woods.

I found nothing. We all came back to camp empty handed. "What are we going to do without Katara?" asked Toph. We all shivered. She was the one who held us together and healed us. I could do the healing, but not as wonderfully as Katara. Sokka looked ill. He kept saying, "Look after your sister. That's what dad said. I mean she's 18 but to me she's still 12 years old." He hunched up on the ground. "She must have gone right past us. I was sleeping. I shouldn't have been sleeping."

I hung my head. "We'll try again tomorrow. We need to get through one day, then I'll bet we'll find her."


	38. Chapter 38:Toph

Chapter 38

I had spent the whole time we were looking in the woods, extending the vibrations as far as they could go. I couldn't feel her in the range. I should have been the one to notice she was missing. I could've felt her leave or something. She moved fast.

I felt the vibrations as Sokka sat next to Suki again. I knew he was holding her hand and talking to her quietly. I want to say I wasn't jealous, so I will. I wasn't. What made you think I was jealous? Maybe it would have been nice if Sokka sat next to me, but I mean, really, who wants that sort of thing happening around the campfire?

I felt so awful about Katara going away. I used to hate her. How awful! Ugh. I felt ill. I went to lie down. I missed Katara. She would have come after me and asked what was wrong. Like I would have answered, but it was comforting.

I would continue looking for her tonight. I listened until everyone was asleep. I got up and walked quietly toward the woods. I ran into Sokka, who was also trying to sneak out and look for Katara.

"Er…"

"Um…."

"Aang can't blame us if we find Katara out there can he?"

I nodded. We all knew Aang was in love with Katara. He would congratulate us if we brought Katara back.

We slipped into the woods. I tried extending the vibrations again. I found something! It was really far away. We would probably get over there by dawn, but the trip back would bring us into camp in the night. If our friends looked for us, we could probably get a lift from them. I told Sokka and we hurried onward.

"Thank you for making me storm off in anger, not see the stairs and fall down them Sokka."

"Why do you say that?"

"It brought me back."

He might have smiled. I extended the vibrations again. There was a more definite figure now. It might have been Katara. Sokka got himself stuck on briars and bushes and tree branches. After I untangled him from the 50th branch, I said, "How do you survive Sokka?"

"There aren't a lot of plants in the South Pole!"

"Yeah? Well this isn't the South Pole. This is the woods."

He struggled to pull his shirt out of a bush. He jogged after me. "Is Katara any closer?" he asked. I nodded. "It's a more definite shape now. Female. 18." Sokka seemed more hopeful.

We trekked until my feet were sore. Sokka began to groan about meat. The shape was certainly Katara. It wasn't moving anywhere. I decided not to tell Sokka. It would make him think she was dead. He panicked over small things.

Then, as the sun began to come up, we found her. She was sitting huddled up, by the remains of a fire. Her hair was undone. Her face was covered in dirt. Sokka said she kept on looking at the fire and muttering, 'Lee was here.'

Sokka swept down a picked up Katara like she was a rag doll. "He was here Sokka. This was a camp of his. But he's moved on." Sokka just held onto her tightly. "Thank the spirits you're safe," he whispered. Katara just shivered. Then she uncurled her fist.


	39. Chapter 39:Katara

Chapter 39

I had spent a rough night in the woods. I had walked for a long time, wondering where to go. My skirt snagged on bramble bushes and mud sucked at my shoes, covering my pants when I sank into a mud hole. My hair had caught a branch and came undone.

I had been so grateful to find the clearing. The place had been a campsite before. There were a few branches made into a temporary shelter. There were the sooty remains of a fire. I looked around the place, searching for any trace of Lee. I wanted to see him so bad. I looked in the remains of the fire. I couldn't see anything in it. I peeked inside the shelter.

There was something small on the ground. I picked it up. It was made of one red, heart shaped stone and a silk band. It was a necklace. I held it up to my neck and then saw there was something on the back.

_For Katara_

Oh! How sweet! Then I began to shiver. It was like an engagement necklace. I gasped. He must really love me! He had to! There must have been someone who was making him do all those horrible things.

Then it got dark. I began to dream of him coming back, wanting the necklace back. He'd sweep me up and kiss me again. He would say he was sorry and we could go back. He would have to marry Toph, but she didn't want him anyway!

I stayed up all night and no one came. I began to stutter when I talked and the air became cold. I clutched the necklace tighter than I thought possible in my fist.

When Toph and Sokka came, I was almost insane. I was relieved when Sokka hugged me and picked me up. It reminded me of the time I had tripped over a ridge of ice. I wasn't hurt that bad, but I cried and asked Sokka to pick me up.

Toph and Sokka stared at the necklace. I curled my fist up again and croaked, "He loves me." Sokka's eyes bugged out of his head. "Here come the others," he said. I looked up to see Appa swoop over us.

Appa landed. Zuko was the one flying it with Suki in the back. We climbed on. I was laid down where I could rest. Appa landed. Sokka picked me up again and carried me off. Aang ran toward me. Sokka let my feet touch the ground. I stumbled and swayed into Aang's arms.

I told them all what happened while Aang held me. I could barely tell how warm I was. A hand was holding mine. It was Aang's. My fingers became warm. I showed the necklace. "He does love me," I finished. "It's true. He made it for me. I have to find him."

Aang said, "He's a liar Katara. He hurt Toph and me. Lee is someone we can't trust."

I stared up at Aang. He was serious.

I jumped up. "You don't understand! You've never cared about someone like I have!" Aang looked hurt, then angry. He turned away.


	40. Chapter 40: Sokka

Chapter 40

I tried to keep my temper under control, and wished I wasn't fuming. I lay back and looked at the stars through the shreds of cloud. How could Katara believe that Lee was good? He wasn't in love with her. He just wanted to hurt us.

After Katara left, Zuko slipped in his own tent. Aang trailed after him, sulking. Suki yawned and kissed me on the cheek. Toph was still sitting across me staring blankly at the fire.

"I can't believe Katara still believes in Lee," murmured Toph. I sat up and looked at her. I saw the bruise on her head. It was almost hidden by her bangs. In the flickering shadows, I thought she looked sort of pretty.

What was I thinking? I was just tired after being up all night that was it. The only time I had gone without sleep was when we were being chased by that machine thing.

To my surprise, Toph slid over to where I was. "What are you looking at?" she asked.

"The stars. I'm looking at those tiny pricks of light in the sky."

"Are they pretty?"

"Yes, but not as pretty as the moon."

She didn't say anything. "I'm worried about Katara," she said finally. "She's unhinged. I saw it in some of the Earth Rumble tournaments." From where I was lying, she looked even tougher, her fists clenched, her mouth in a distinct frown. I sat up and said, "Katara had her heart broken. I guess that's what she's feeling." Toph shook her head. "I've had my heart broken and it doesn't make you insane. Just wiser." I raised an eyebrow, confused. Since when did she have a heart broken? She bit her lip as though she'd regretted saying it, but it was too late.

"When did you-?"

"Drop it Sokka or I will punch you so hard you will be in the Air Temples."

"I just wanted to know."

"Why?"

"You're my friend."

She paused. Then she laughed and said, "All right. He was a friend. He made a lot muscle reflections in any water he could find and he was a bit hard headed." I wondered who she could mean. She looked at me and huffed. "You don't really get it do you?" She sounded angry. She stood up and walked to her tent.

I lay back, wondering who she meant. Then I remembered. Lee acted like that! Did Toph love Lee? How long had she loved him? I knew one thing for sure. She did love him.


	41. Chapter 41:Katara

Chapter 41

I was shivering in my sleep. I had been looking forward to my sleeping bag. I held the necklace in my hand. Lee wasn't going to approach camp on his own. He wasn't going to sweep me up.

"Katara."

I popped up. There was a shadow in the entryway. The shadow moved forward, and I recognized it. Lee. He had come! I hugged him. He kissed my forehead and helped me to my feet.

I followed him out of the dark tent, not making a sound. We approached the shape of a war balloon. Lee helped me inside the basket and held me close to him.

The sound of the fire starting up must have woken up the others. Sokka leapt to his feet and cried, "Katara!" He ran over followed by Aang, Zuko and Toph. Aang jumped after the heightening balloon and grabbed my hand, trying to pull me out of the basket. I leaned over the edge, Lee holding onto me. "Let me go Aang," I murmured. "I love Lee. He won't hurt me." I stared into his eyes. He let go. "Wise descision, Avatar," hissed Lee. Aang sank back down to the ground. They faded out of view.


	42. Chapter 42:Zuko

Chapter 42

Aang sank to his knees as the air balloon drifted out of sight. I walked forward and put a hand on his shoulder. "I shouldn't have let go," he muttered. "She asked me too and said she loved him. That he wouldn't hurt her." I sighed. "She'll be fine," I said. "She's tough." He didn't look comforted. Sokka was crying out, "She left! We warned her!" Toph kneeled by him and patted his shoulder. I thought I saw a few tears, but he was concealing them rather well. Suki just stood there with her hand over her mouth. How could Lee just waltz into camp? It was insane!

"Well," I said. "We won't be able to do much just standing here. Let's go after him." Aang shook his head. "No? But you love Katara." He just nodded. "She doesn't love me," he said. "She loves Lee. I don't know why, but she does." I sighed. This was pathetic! He should just try. "We need our rest anyway," I said. I trudged off to my tent, thinking about what Katara had said before we all went to bed. It sounded as though she had cracked. I remembered when she talked to me about her mother. She had understood. The first word that came to mind when you thought of her was, 'mom'.

How could she just go?


	43. Chapter 43:Toph

Chapter 43

I was on watch. Sokka was lying beside me, asleep. He was going to take the next shift. I touched my arm where the bracelet was. I slid it off my arm and felt the designs.

"Hey Toph."

"Yes?"

Sokka looked at me from his spot on the ground. He reached out to touch the bracelet. "It's nice," he mumbled. "I hate it," I spat. "It's a marriage band. It has the Panda Lily on it. The arm band still connects me to Lee. That's why I hate it."

"I thought you liked him."

"Me? Like him? What gave you that idea?"

"You talked about a boy who made muscles at his reflection and who is hardheaded. That sounds like Lee."

I rolled my eyes. The idiot! I laughed. "You're an idiot," I said. "I don't love Lee." Sokka was puzzled. I could tell because he said, "So…who do you-?" I cut him off. "You can drop it Sokka. I just told you because I thought you wouldn't ask questions."

After everything that happened, I couldn't believe we were talking about this! Katara, who seemed like my big sister, was gone. She had been crazy enough to go with Lee. I missed her. Sokka missed her too. Aang probably missed her the most. We all knew that he loved her.

I leaned back and put my arms behind my head. I was so tired after what happened, but I couldn't go to sleep. We were on watch.

Then I fell asleep. I knew I shouldn't have but I was so exhausted. When I opened my eyes, I _saw _a scene in front of me. I looked at the figures in the woods.

The first person was a boy. I recognized Lee. He said, "I have the girl with me. That should lure the Avatar and his friends right into your path."

"Excellent Lee. I want you to keep the peasant oblivious."

"That's not hard. She's so smitten she couldn't see my plans even if I told her."

I thought I recognized the second voice. I shivered. I didn't get scared easily but that voice could have scared trees out of their roots. I tried to remember where I had heard that voice. _Are you sure? I'm a pretty good liar._ Oh! I stumbled backwards.

I woke up, gasping. Sokka turned to me and asked, "Bad dream?" I nodded. "Lee is in league with Azula!"


End file.
